Our dead are never dead to us
by Sevi007
Summary: (Spoiler warning) He was slipping, dying. Perhaps it would be a relief - no more pain, no more hate. He couldn't get revenge on him, though... (The moment All Might dies, he is gently forced to remember something very important. He can't die yet.)


**Drabble prompt was "Kill me" with All Might and All for One.**

 **So, uh, I suck a writing death and battles and All for One especially, but I tried my best! *goes to cover somewhere***

He had been screaming at the top of his lunges.

He couldn't remember it, but it had to be like that, since his throat was raw and every single breath rasped and whistled in his chest.

(A part of him realized dimly that his breathe was whistling _out of his chest_ , like through a _hole,_ but his mind wouldn't accept that fact, pushing it away along with the most of his conscious thoughts.)

His eyes were half-lidded, leaving him only a thin slit of vision. What he saw was red. Wet, glistening red, slowly spreading out in front of him, under him, next to him.

( _Blood,_ the word swirled up inside his scrambled thoughts, before it was gone again, soaked up by the apathy that had taken hold of him.)

It was almost beautiful, all that red. A deep red, a contrast against the colour of the earth he was lying on.

( _Blood on rubble, blood spreading out over shattered earth and overturned buildings…_ )

A cough rattled Toshinori, the sound weak and splattering. More red bloomed in front of him as pain laced through his left side, over his chest and down his abdomen, sharp and blazing. For a moment, his vision sharpened, and his consciousness returned-

( _Stand up, need to stand up, can't stay here, need to…!)_

Panic interlaced with the sharp pain and Toshinori groaned, the sound even pitiful in his own ears as he willed his body to move. His right arm twitched and moved closer to his torso, but there was no response from his left arm

To be honest, he couldn't even _feel_ his left arm over the flaring pain. He could feeling nothing from his left shoulder downwards apart from the liquid fire of pain that threatened to consume him.

"You're still alive? What an utterly annoying being you are, _All Might._ "

The coarse voice waved into his ears unbidden, and it sparked something inside him. Through the panic and pain, there came hate. Pure, unfiltered hate.

 _You!_

A croaking sound left Toshinori's mouth, a growl broken down into pieces of a whimper and a cough. More sticky red bubbled up his throat and over his lips and chin.

A rustle resounded next to him, and a pair of shoes appeared in his sight, stopping right in front of him.

"Still clinging to live even in such a pitiful state. I was aware that of your so-called determination, but I did not take you for that much of a fool", a cough, this time not from Toshinori himself, rattling and hacked. "You… you're even more pathetic than she was."

Part of Toshinori could not remember who "she" was, too far gone already, but the hate still intensified, a fire steadily stoked up.

( _Don't you dare to talk about her like that…!_ screamed what little bit of his mind was still functioning.)

The shoes disappeared from his sight, steps resounding. Circling him slowly. "How the mighty have fallen. Putting one's hope into a mere child… what did she think? That you would able to beat me with your temper tantrums? With your faked smile?"

The steps stopped, yet the words didn't.

"She was a fool."

Hate surged again, and Toshinori _growled_ even through a cough, his right hand scrambling for purchase, to push him up again and _break_ that mocking face he knew was there…

A wet _Thwack_ resounded, and pain flared through his left side again as something connected, hard, with what was left of it.

And there were the screams again, ripped from his raw throat, ringing through the night.

Laughter, next to him.

Screams and laughter and pain, pain, _pain_ …

When it finally stopped, the young hero was not even able to remember his own name. There was calm darkness reaching out for him, promising him peace and painless sleep.

He barely registered that someone was talking to him still.

"You're dying already. I will just wait and watch while the last bit of your pitiful life fades away and takes _her_ legacy with it."

Something about that stung more than the pain in his side, and Toshinori choked on his blood even as the darkness greeted him with open arms.

"I wonder if she would regret now… regret to have passed her powers down to an easily angered child like you."

( _No, no, that's not what I wanted…!_ )

"Well, you probably will get the chance to ask her that yourself."

The darkness welled up and swallowed up the last of Toshinori's consciousness.

The last thing he heard was the mocking voice, hissing into his ears like a snake.

"Farewell, All Might."

* * *

" _Yagi Toshinori, you better have a good explanation as to why you're bruised and beaten up yet again!"_

 _Toshinori's eyes snapped open at the sound of a familiar, loved voice._

 _No pain, was the first thing he realized._

 _No blood, the next._

 _He was standing, even though he should not have been able to. He wasn't wounded, he wasn't amidst a battle field – was this his old training hall? – and he felt warm and safe._

A dream, _he thought._

 _But he shouldn't be able to dream. He was dead, right? Did the dead dream?_

" _Seriously, you silly boy…!"_

 _Again, that voice. Pulling at his mind, his heart, filling him with warmth and pain at the same time._

 _He whirled around, frantically searching for her. Dream or not, dead or not, if he would be able to see her just one more time…_

 _And there she was, striding towards him, eyes ablaze and a smile tugging at the corners of her mouth as she marched through the trainings hall._

 _Alive and well. Alive. She was…_

Sensei!

 _He rushed forward before he knew it, longing and disbelieve and hope pulling him towards her even though he, deep down, knew that this is not real. She was not really here, she's gone, gone, gone…_

 _Still, Toshinori can't help but reach for her in a desperate attempt to touch her, draw her close and hold her (protect her)._

 _The moment his hands connected with Nana's arm, they passed through her without any resistance. Nana didn't stop her stride, didn't even notice him as she just_ walked right through him.

 _Toshinori came to an abrupt halt, reality crushing down onto him._

 _This was not real. But even in this dream world, he was no longer able to hold onto her._

" _What did you do this time, my boy?" Nana said from somewhere behind him, exasperated fondness in her voice._

 _He stood there as she walked away from him without even seeing him. His heart squeezed painfully in his chest, hands balled into fists, he had to remind himself_ You shouldn't be surprised, she is dead, she is gone…

… she won't save you this time.

" _It wasn't my fault, Sensei! They started it!"_

 _A shiver run down Toshinori spine involuntarily as he heard the familiar words in an equally familiar voice._

 _That was…_

 _He turned slowly, disbelieving._

 _And saw himself._

 _Not the same self that he saw every day in the mirror, a tall, slightly bulky man reflected back at him._

 _No, what Toshinori saw was his scrawny younger self. Untameable blond hair, lanky and tall, muscles only just starting to form. All bones and long limbs he once used to trip over. He looked so young, young and not filled with bitterness yet, even though there was a pout on his face, a stubborn frown pulling down his eyebrows. A bloodied lip and a bruise next to his left eye destroyed the picture of young and healthy a bit._

 _And now Toshinori remembered. Remembered that day, where anger had surged up inside him and he had childishly expressed that fury by punching the reason for it square in the face._

 _Nana had shaken her head at him and sighed when he had come back to her, all beaten up and bruised…_

… _exactly like she did now. "It's not important who started anything, I'm asking what you did."_

 _There was an almost inaudible mumble as the teenager shoved his hands into his pockets and stared intently at the ground._

" _Toshinori?" Nana's eyebrows had reached her hairline, even as she carefully caressed the boy's cheek, assessing the damage down to his face with keen eyes._

 _Another mumble, a bit louder. "They insulted you."_

 _There was a pause, and then Nana sighed again. Letting go of his chin, she opted for slapping the boy upside the head instead._

" _OW! Sensei, what are you doing?!"_

" _You're such an idiot sometimes, Toshi."_

" _Wha-…?! I'm not!"_

" _Are too."_

" _Am not!"_

" _Are too, and end of the discussion," Nana slapped him again, gentler this time. "Really, what does it matter if someone insults me? Just walk away!"_

 _The teenager bristled, even as Toshinori smiled ruefully and a tad bitterly. "I could never walk away just like that when someone talks_ bullshit…"

" _Language, Toshi!"_

"… _such stupid things about you!"_

" _Yes, you can. You just don't want to."_

" _Well, there is no difference!"_

" _Of course there is!" Nana rolled her eyes, huffing in amusement at her stubborn, pouting student. "Can we agree that next time, you just turn around and walk away, head held high, and don't get yourself into trouble?"_

" _Why?!"_

" _Because it pains me to see you get hurt, especially when you get hurt because of me."_

 _The anger on the boy's face dissipated in the blink of an eye, making way for shock and surprise. He flushed heavily, blue eyes scanning Nana's expression. As she just smiled at him, holding his gaze, he finally realized that she was really serious about this._

 _Surprise turned into guilt, squared shoulders sagging as the teenager deflates and let's his gaze fall to the ground. "I… I'm sorry, Sensei."_

I'm so sorry, Nana, _he wanted to tell her, desperately so. Wanted to hug her, hide in her embrace like he used to do so often, and soak up her warmth. Draw strength from her._ I'm sorry.

" _Well, you better_ be _sorry!" Nana exclaimed, throwing her hands into the air in faked exasperation. Gently smiling down at his younger self, her expressions softened as she reached out for the boy, tilting his chin up with one finger so that she could look him in the eyes. "I didn't teach you to be an angry grump who only seeks revenge. So don't be like that. You're not suited for revenge, Toshinori – you're much too kind-hearted for that. And that's a good thing! You have such a big heart, you should use your strength for good things! When you work in tandem with what your heart tells you, then you will do great, you know?"_

" _But…" the boy placed a hand over his heart (without knowing that his future – present – self did exactly the same in the same moment). There was a frown marring the young face as the teenager looked down onto his own hand. "But… hearing someone insult you hurts, Sensei. And then I want to…_ do _something. Is that not following my heart?"_

" _No, you stubborn boy. That's acting rashly," Nana laughed at his pout, ruffling his hair. "There is a difference."_

" _How can I tell the difference, Sensei? How do I know what the right thing to do is?"_

" _That's an easy one. You just have to remember the most important thing."_

" _The most important thing? What's that?"_

" _What are you fighting for?"_

 _There was a pause, and both past and present seemed to stagger and whirl, overlapping for a moment as both the teenager and the man answered at the same time:_

"For you, Sensei."

 _Nana's smile flickered, and a frown passed over her features as she seemed to think about that. Then she let out a breath, a sound somewhere between a huff, a sigh and a sharp bark of laughter._

" _No, you silly boy. I'm not the one you're fighting for. I'm not your reason."_

" _H-Huh? But… Sensei, you_ are! _"_

 _Silence descended over them, and Toshinori noted how the world around them seemed to get dark and lifeless. There was only the three of them left now, amidst a waste void._

" _Ah. You really forgot, then?" There was sadness and understanding in Nana's voice, even though she smiled still._

What? _He wants to ask._

" _Forgot what?" His younger self asked._

" _You have to remember, Toshinori."_

" _Remember what, Sensei?"_

 _Nana opened her mouth to speak, and as she did, her gaze left the face of his younger self, flitting over her shoulder and focused on him, on_ Toshinori, _capturing his attention, holding it with burning intensity._

 _There was a kaleidoscope of emotions trapped inside that gaze – sadness, sternness, determination, pride, hope and love, so much love, as a smile split Nana's features._

" _Remember."_

* * *

All for One shifted where he had sat down on the rubble, his legs no longer able to carry him.

 _Broken left leg,_ he assessed the damage absentmindedly, still concentrating on the lifeless body in front of him. _At least six broken rips, right arm muscle shredded due to overuse of my quirks. Most likely a conjunction. Inner bleedings are likely._

In the end, the newest successor of One for All had done his best to end him, throwing punch after punch in fury, taking the hits of the villains quirk stubbornly without even bothering to dodge.

That had been his greatest mistake.

All for One hummed in satisfaction, the sound sending a throb of pain through his mangled ribcage. It had been all too easy, luring the child – because that was what All Might had been to him, a _child_ – into the fight. All Might had been blinded by fury, by pain and the need to avenge his late master.

A few well-place words, an insult about Shimura Nana here, a mocking laugh there, and the young one had completely lost it. Surging into the battle with a roar, trying to get to the villain, trying to _kill him._

He hadn't thought of dodging the well-aimed blast All for One had thrown at him, too wrapped up in his need to destroy to be careful. It had cost him half his torso, and his life, too.

 _The heart,_ All for One mused. _Those big, fragile hearts is what kills most of the users of One for All._

 _Am I right, Shimura?_

He laughed softly, breathlessly. Out of the One for All users, Shimura had been the most fun to play with, apart from his own younger brother. She had been broken by the loss of her family, but she had never shown it, not even when he had tried to provoke her. She had grinned, thrown a witty comeback at him, and kept going.

 _I won't fall for your tricks,_ she had told him during their last fight, and had smiled at him.

Smiled.

Nobody ever smiled at All for One. But she had done so, even through blood and pain, and looked him straight in the eye. There had been no desperation or hate in her gaze, just conviction, and hope, and something almost mocking.

He had been quite impressed, he had to admit. The woman had been at death's door, and she had known it. Nonetheless, she had _kept smiling._

Oh, how he had wished to shatter that smile. To see her in despair.

" _My student will be the end of you, villain."_

He laughed again, louder this time.

What would she have thought, now that her student was as dead as she was? Killed because he had been devoured by his wish for revenge?

Would she have finally lost her smile?

Scanning the surroundings with his infrared ray, he shifted uncomfortably, trying to take some weight away from his broken bones. Luckily, there was no one around yet who could have used his fleeting moment of weakness as an opportunity. Their fight had been too intense for other heroes and villains alike, so the biggest part of this city had been evacuated, and reinforcements had been forced to wait at the borders of it all.

Now, the city lay in ashes, and the golden number one hero had fallen with it. His quirk showed him nothing, no heat from the fallen body at all.

No warmth, no life was left in that dead shell.

Deeming it save to say that his opponent would not stand up ever again, All for One made to prepare to move his own broken body. There would be pain involved, but he was used to that.

Concentrating on his breath, he put weight on his uninjured leg.

That was when his battle instincts spiked, and he froze mid-motion, alarmed.

It was just a notion, a prickle at the borders of his consciousness, but he had long since learned to trust this feeling.

Mind working at high-speed, he looked, listened and scanned the area with all his senses and quirks alike.

Just who had dared to move into this field of destruction? One of his underlings? Or All Might's so-called friends?

A slight tremor passed through the ground, alarming him further. A strong opponent, then. He would have to be careful, perhaps even need to retreat for the moment, if it was someone who was stronger than him in this weakened state…

A whisper, a slight gush of wind, and then, the crackle of power.

For a split second, it died down again, before it all but _exploded._

With a roar and a burst of energy, something _erupted_ in front of him, almost knocking All for One of his seat. Wind howled like a storm, and the night lit up as a pillar of light surged up right in front of him.

Right from where All Might had fallen.

It took him far too long to realize what it meant, and when his mind finally was able to connect the dots, All for One felt himself go pale.

He had seen this outburst of power before. Concentrated power, polished for generations, passed down time and time again in order to be honed and cultivated further. A power, refined for the sole purpose of protecting others from his evil-doing.

 _One for All._

"How is this possible?!"

And All Might rose from the rubble, tall and proud even in the face of death and destruction. There was blood dripping down his left side, barely covering up the mess of flesh and blood and _missing parts_ that was left of what once had been half a torso. But he stood, blue eyes blazing with inner fire, skin glowing under his quirk and power crackling in the air around him, the outburst enough to send pebbles flying away to all sides and shatter the ground around his feet.

All Might's trademark smile was gone, replaced by a snarl as the steely blue gaze swept over the field of destruction before setting heavily onto the villain. The gaze seemed to a physical weight, crushing down onto the villain like a ton and pinning him into place.

All for One tried to move, but he found that he could not. Sitting down had been a move of sick satisfaction, of making a show out of watching his opponent slowly die in front of his eyes. Now, it proved to be a fatal mistake. His tired and broken body wouldn't obey him, had completely ceased to work because he had let the last rush of adrenaline pass in favour of waiting and watching.

All of sudden, he was nothing more than a broken and beat man in front of an enraged hero who had just overcome death.

Death…

"This cannot be," the words left All for One as a whisper, unbelieving. Confusion turned to anger, fuelling his voice until he was roaring at his opponent, losing his composure for the first time in years. "This cannot _be!_ You were _dead!_ You have no right to be alive! How can you…"

Another crackle, almost like thunder, and the blue eyes narrowed to slits as All Might listened patiently.

The calm anger flowing off the hero was unnerving. It had nothing in common with the blind, heated fury from before.

Fury he could manipulate and twist, but this calmness, this single-mindedness, he could do nothing against.

" _My student will be the end of you, villain."_

He couldn't comprehend it. He, who always know what to do, always found a way to win, couldn't comprehend what just had happened.

For the first time in a very, very long time, All for One felt real fear.

"How can you still be alive?!"

Toshinori almost wasn't able to hear what the villain was saying. There was a rushing sound in his ears, his blood pulsing through his body much faster than ever before. One for All had taken completely over, fuelled by his determination to _keep living, at least until the enemy was defeated._ His quirk was roaring through his body, keeping his heart going, his lunges working, his broken limbs moving.

It also meant that he was bleeding out faster now, the blood all but spurting out of the large wound in his side. But he didn't really care.

He already had been dead once, and he had resigned himself to the thought that he would die again in a few minutes.

Yet, the last question he understood.

 _How?_

The single word was not enough to stop the rush of power, nor his advancing on the villain, but it was enough to provoke an answer from him.

"I remembered."

All Might's voice was gravel, a deep rumble drowning out the crackle and howling of One for All whipping around him like a storm. He took a step forward, and the ground shook under his feet, cracking further.

All for One couldn't even move back, unable to do more than await what was about to come. Yet, the man managed hoarsely, "Remembered what?"

"The most important thing."

All Might stopped before All for One. The hero, broken yet standing, towering over the all-powerful and beaten villain.

This time, Toshinori felt no anger or hate as he looked down onto the man who had brought him so much pain. There was no need for revenge, no urge to hurt, to break, to kill.

Just the knowledge that this man would be dead in a few moments.

Just like Toshinori would be.

As the seconds trickled by, he could feel the strength leaving his body again. All that was keeping him alive right now was a mixture of his own willpower, One for All and the whisper of a familiar voice at the back of his mind, urging him to _go on, your story is not finished yet… don't forget, Toshinori… remember…_

 _ **Remember your origin.**_

"The reason why I will stop you is not _revenge,"_ he began, needing to explain that the twisted man could no longer control him through his anger.

One for All had always been a steady source of warmth in his chest, first a spark and later a little flame burning brightly. Now, it felt like a wildfire, power surging through him without him consciously having to move it along, flooding through him like liquid heat and gathering in his right arm. Only little sparks were left for the rest of his body, just enough to keep the broken and battered limbs moving.

"The reason why I will stop you, here and now, are the people I promised to protect."

He closed his fingers, balling them into a fist around the point where the heat had gathered in the middle of his palm. Holding onto that power he had left. He could feel it pulse in his palm like a heartbeat, an explosion ready to be released.

"Spouting big words," All for One seemed to sag further into himself, a puppet which's strings had been cut. "However, all you're about to do now is killing a man who cannot even move anymore. Do you feel like a hero because of such an act? Would your beloved master be proud of you, knowing that you drenched your hands in blood for her sake?"

Not too long ago, this would have been enough to let hate and rage flood Toshinori once more, clouding his mind once more.

Now, it was no longer to do any damage.

 _You saved me again, Sensei._

 _You made me remember._

"This is not for Nana," both All Might and Toshinori rasped, for once united in thought and body, no difference between hero and man left. "This is for everyone. This is for the society I swore to protect."

He swung his fist up, the last bit of power leaving his legs, his body, in order to concentrate in his last punch.

"This is my job as a _pillar."_

He didn't give the villain any more time to talk. No more words, no more insults. Not this time.

" _ **SMASH!"**_

Toshinori pushed forward, even though his breathe started to rattle and whistle again, even though his body screamed in agony at each movement.

His fist connected with All for One's face, a sickening _Crack_ resounding, followed by a muffled scream. And the momentum didn't stop there, fist still driving forward and downwards, sweeping the villain of his feet and towards the ground.

There was the rumbling of earth shattering under the force mixed with the sound of bones breaking like glass, and the screams stopped. And dust cloud rose up, chunks of earth flying up with it before prattling down again.

It was the strongest punch he had ever thrown, and part of him was amazed and terrified at the sheer _power_ Nana had passed onto him. Toshinori felt bones giving in under his fist, felt the earth shatter and groan, felt One for All pulsing through his veins one last time before dissipating.

He stayed where he was without knowing for how long, fist still pressed in what once had been a face and was now a mess, features unrecognizable under the blood.

There was no life sign from the body under his.

 _It's over,_ he thought. _He's gone._

It was strangely anti-climactic, seeing his nemesis broken and lifeless like a doll in front of him.

Then, Toshinori tried to draw breathe, and wasn't able to. His lunges – _lung_ – worked uselessly, and the try had him coughing and hacking, spitting blood towards the ground.

One for All left him slowly, warmth vanishing and making way for a chill that seemed to stem from his very core. Dizziness overwhelmed him, and he staggered back as his legs gave out under him. He sank down onto his knees, the world blurring and darkening around him.

Toshinori tried desperately to draw breathe as the last bit of his power left him. The pain returned tenfold, his left side on fire, his mouth and throat filled with his blood instead of the much needed oxygen. He coughed, and red splattered onto the ground, even more pain lacing through him.

His consciousness was slipping, falling into an abyss he probably would not be able to leave again once he fell, but he couldn't bring himself to care.

 _Sensei…_

The corners of his vision were swallowed up by darkness rapidly, and each breathe became slower and slower.

 _Did I do well, Sensei?_

A whisper, a last spark of One for All sparking through him. A whisper…

" _You sure did, Toshi."_

Hopeful wishing or fevered hallucination, it didn't matter, it still warmed him for a split second.

A shaky smile made its way onto his lips as he sighed, the last bit of his breathe leaving him in a whistling sound.

He was still smiling as the ground came rushing towards him and everything turned dark.


End file.
